Hi Panoscape,
Thanks for taking the time to respond. My intention was for the wash to be gristless. I visualized the process as extracting the fluid from the mash tun using the false bottom and transferring it into the conical fermenter without the grist. The grist would then be properly disposed of afterwards. I've looked at the herms system as well, but it seems like distillation systems that I've read/observed online are primarily using RIMS, so didn't know if there was a specific reason for that appeared preference. I would enjoy a jacketed setup, but it's just not a reality for me right now without a proven product and branding combination (and being a new to the industry). I thank you for your observation regarding the fumes and fire marshall test, wasn't thinking about that aspect of the process. I spoke to the folks who produce the tanks I listed above and they have the ability to create a heating unit port in the HLT for me, so I think I will probably go that route. In terms of the size of the tanks, my logic was that if I create a wash of about 60 gallons, then strip it, I would have about 20 gallons of low wines that I could run in the spirits run. That capacity would allow me to capture some feints as well as learn the heads and tails cuts. I was also thinking that casking would be a little more practical if I could run batches at approximately 10 gallons end product volume, perhaps combining them between 10, 20 and 30 gallon barrels. Lastly if, I produce grape distilled vodka, I think these tanks could get me off the ground from a business perspective. Clearly, I would have some capacity issues, but my thoughts was that this setup could get into a position where I could test market a product and potentially supply some low volume retailers to create cash flow to re-invest into the operation and attract potential investors. Anyway, I appreciate your help; let me know if you think this is way off base here. Thank you again for your input.